Vegan Seitan Butcher Counter to Open in Milwaukee

Celesta will offer late-night food, cocktails, internationally inspired dishes, and a butchery counter where seitan-based meats will be available by the pound.

New vegan restaurant Celesta will open this spring in Milwaukee, WI. The restaurant is a brick-and-mortar extension of vegan food brand Beatrix Foods, founded in 2016 by Melanie Manuel—who studied plant-based nutrition at Cornell University. Manuel launched Beatrix to “reinvent rabbit food,” a philosophy that extends to Celesta, where she plans to serve dishes influenced by her international travels to China and Germany. Celesta will also feature a full bar and “butchery” counter where setian-based meats will be available by the pound. “We also plan to have a robust happy hour with specialty cocktails and fun bar bites, as well as late-night drinks with a bar menu,” Manuel said. The Midwest has undergone a veritable vegan makeover in recent years after the 2015 arrival of vegan shop The Herbivorous Butcher in Minneapolis, with new vegan eateries such as St. Paul’s J. Selby’s attracting large crowds looking for plant-based options.